U.S. Court Unanimously Upholds TikTok Ban; ByteDance Must Sell by Jan. 19 or Face Ban

Dec 6, 2024, 04:00 PM

On December 6, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit unanimously upheld a law requiring TikTok's Chinese parent company ByteDance to divest its ownership of the popular short video app in the United States by January 19, 2025, or face a ban. The legislation, passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden in April, aims to address national security concerns over TikTok's Chinese ownership. With 170 million U.S. users, TikTok faces a potential nationwide ban if ByteDance fails to sell the platform to a non-Chinese company by the deadline. The court's decision affirms the constitutionality of the law, allowing the U.S. government to take action to protect national interests. The President has the authority to grant a 90-day extension if there is progress toward divestment.